“It’s a tremendous loss for the college,” said Ken Gilmore, head of the Political Science department. “She is a great teacher, a good friend, and will certainly be missed at Guilford,” said Dave Dobson, Geology and Earth Sciences professor.

“I could always go to her and she’d go out of her way to help me,” said James Tatum, a junior Political Science major. “I’m certainly sorry to see her go.”

Andrea Gerlak, a professor of Political Science since 1996 and the person chiefly responsible for the Environmental Studies major, will leave Guilford at the end of December.

“It caught me by surprise,” said Tatum, who learned of Andrea’s departure through an email to Political Science majors two weeks before the school year began. “I don’t see how she could possibly turn it down though.”

What Gerlak could not turn down was a job offer to teach at Columbia University’s Biosphere, a giant metal and glass dome built in the early 90’s to host every ecosystem found on the planet. The facility is located 30 miles outside of Tuscon, Arizona.

Columbia took over what was originally a privately funded operation after it closed in 1995. The university bought it to offer students “interdisciplinary hands-on experience in environmental studies.”

“There aren’t too many rain forests in New York,” Gerlak joked.

Her teaching at the Biosphere will deal directly with the topic of both her dissertation and the manuscript she is currently writing: water policy in the West. The book concerns the demand for water and the history behind it, including criticism of the lack of a national water policy. “Who controls the resources is very political,” Gerlak said. In her new position, “I’ll get to do every day what I’m writing about.”

The new position will also put her closer to her family in Arizona. Her husband was offered a job in the same area. “It’s basically a dream,” she said. “I’ve been very happy here. It has to be a great offer for me to leave.”

Ken Gilmore agrees. “I think the reasons for her leaving are completely understandable,” he said. “It’s the Don Corleone of job offers; she’s been made an offer she can’t refuse.”

Gerlak came to Guilford five years ago to teach American politics and constitutional law. “I came into a fairly well-established department,” she said.

Soon after, Gerlak saw the need for an Environmental Studies major. She noted apparent student interest but “no one had really put it together.”

Through grass-roots student involvement and the cooperation of several departments, a team of faculty created the major, which was approved by the administration in 1999. So far, 35 Guilford students have graduated as Environmental Studies majors, including 11 last year. Gerlak runs the program with Dave Dobson of the Geology and Earth Sciences department.

“She was extremely effective,” Dobson said. “Without her, we couldn’t have done it.”

Now Gilmore faces the challenge of replacing Gerlak with someone as solid as she is in both American government and the environment.

“It’s hard for me to leave the civil liberties and American presidency courses. Hopefully, my replacement will have a strong environmental studies background as well,” Gerlak said. “But when things are going well in the department it’s easier to leave knowing everything is going to be okay.”

“Although I am greatly excited for Andrea and her new opportunity, I am sad that Guilford is losing her,” said Jenni Robertson, one of Gerlak’s students. “I only hope that the Biosphere appreciates her as much as we do.”

“Her replacement will have enormous shoes to fill,” said Gilmore, who will head the committee to replace her. Robert Duncan will cover the Spring 2002 semester as a full time visiting faculty member. Duncan has designed a 300-level course on terrorism, covering its history in America from the Barbary Pirates during Washington’s administration to the present.

Gilmore assures students that “there will be no decrease of courses offered during the transition.” It will be conducted “as quickly and as smoothly as possible,” he said.

“Replacing Andrea certainly won’t be easy, but I have total confidence that we will hire new faculty as gifted as the people we are losing,” Gilmore said. Another Political Science professor, Louis Fike, plans to retire at the end of the Spring semester of 2002.

James Tatum, who is now taking Andrea’s constitutional law class, added that “it definitely creates a huge challenge for the department.” He appreciates that the department includes students in the replacement process. “As long as students are involved and we see the desired expertise in candidates that matches the demands of students, then I think there’s a very strong future for Political Science at Guilford,” he said.

Ken Gilmore is also optimistic. “While it’s a loss for the department, her replacement will have the enthusiasm, warmth, and grace that Andrea has,” he said. “We will quickly and effectively move to have her replacement in by Fall 2002. Not that it will be easy.”